Planning for retirement is a universal concern of American workers, regardless of their ages. But certain groups of workers must plan for the financial challenges of retirement in a context of unequal access to the institutions and public programs that help workers save for and manage that phase of their lives.

Gay, lesbian, and bisexual employees (among other disadvantaged groups) face challenges that reflect employer practices and legal institutions that create a context of inequality. In particular, the lack of legal recognition for the same-sex partners of employees results in unequal treatment in employersˇ retirement plans.

This report analyzes the impact of unequal treatment of same-sex partners in the context of retirement plans and estimates the cost for employers of adopting a policy of equal treatment. The focus of this report is retirement income rather than health care provision for retirees and their families. Our goal is to address several key issues for same-sex couples as they plan for retirement. We find that same-sex couples face inequalities when it comes to their ability to accumulate wealth, plan for their futures, and pass on wealth.

The characteristics of all same-sex couples provide a mixed picture for predicting their retirement savings and wealth. While some of the characteristics indicate that they would have less retirement savings and wealth than different-sex married couples, other indicate they would have more. Current research suggests:

• Same-sex couples are less likely to own their homes than are different-sex married couples, and homes comprise the largest component of wealth for most Americans during retirement.
• Individuals in same-sex couples may have longer employment histories which would suggest greater retirement income. In particular women in same-sex couples have longer work histories than women in different-sex married couples.
• Individuals in same-sex couples have high levels of education. Because education is related to retirement savings and wealth, this would suggest that same-sex are more likely to save for retirement and have higher overall savings.

Women in same-sex couples are disadvantaged in terms of employment that provides employer-sponsored pension plans.

• Only 50% percent of female same-sex couples have at least one member eligible for an employer-sponsored retirement plan compared to 56% of different-sex married couples and 79% of male same-sex couples.
• Rates of participation in employer-sponsored plans also vary by couple type: only 46% of female same-sex couples have at least one member participating in an employer-sponsored plan compared to 52% of different-sex married couples and 69% of male same-sex couples. ...

Download The Impact of Inequality for Same-Sex Partners in Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans

PDF format, 489KB, 28Pages.

Naomi G. Goldberg
The Williams Institute, UCLA

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Naomi G. Goldberg is the Peter J. Cooper Public Policy Fellow at the Williams Institute, UCLA School of Law.

She received a Master of Public Policy from the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan and graduated magna cum laude from Mount Holyoke College with a degree in Critical Social Thought. Naomi’s research interests focus on policies affecting families.

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